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A prospective study of cultural consonance and depressive symptoms in urban Brazil

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  • Dressler, William W.
  • Balieiro, Mauro C.
  • Ribeiro, Rosane P.
  • dos Santos, Jose E.

Abstract

Cultural consonance refers to the degree to which individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, approximate the prototypes for belief and behavior encoded in shared cultural models. In previous cross-sectional studies, lower cultural consonance in several cultural domains was associated with worse health outcomes, including greater psychological distress. The current paper extends these findings in three ways. First, the effect of cultural consonance on depressive symptoms is tested in a prospective study. Second, it is hypothesized that the effect of cultural consonance in a specific cultural domain will depend on the degree of cultural consensus within that domain: the higher the cultural consensus, the greater the effect of change in cultural consonance in that domain on depressive symptoms. Third, it is hypothesized that cultural consonance will have an inverse effect on depressive symptoms independent of the occurrence of stressful life events (a well-known risk factor for depression). We tested these hypotheses in a study conducted in urban Brazil, and found that change in cultural consonance (assessed as a general construct) was associated with depressive symptoms at a 2-year follow-up. Furthermore, cultural consonance in the domains in which there was highest cultural consensus--the domains of family life and lifestyle--was more strongly associated with depressive symptoms at follow-up than cultural consonance in domains with lower cultural consensus. Finally, all of these effects were independent of stressful life events. These results lend further support to the importance of cultural consonance in relation to human health.

Suggested Citation

  • Dressler, William W. & Balieiro, Mauro C. & Ribeiro, Rosane P. & dos Santos, Jose E., 2007. "A prospective study of cultural consonance and depressive symptoms in urban Brazil," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 65(10), pages 2058-2069, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:65:y:2007:i:10:p:2058-2069
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Dressler, William W. & Balieiro, Mauro C. & Ribeiro, Rosane P. & Ernesto Dos Santos, José, 2005. "Cultural consonance and arterial blood pressure in urban Brazil," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 61(3), pages 527-540, August.
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    1. Hanlon, Charlotte & Whitley, Rob & Wondimagegn, Dawit & Alem, Atalay & Prince, Martin, 2009. "Postnatal mental distress in relation to the sociocultural practices of childbirth: An exploratory qualitative study from Ethiopia," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 69(8), pages 1211-1219, October.
    2. Cheng-Jong Lee & Chao-Sen Wu & Chiung-Tzu Lin, 2012. "Leisure activity and coping with stress: adolescents as case study," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 46(3), pages 979-991, April.
    3. Closser, Svea & Maes, Kenneth & Gong, Erick & Sharma, Neha & Tesfaye, Yihenew & Abesha, Roza & Hyman, Mikayla & Meyer, Natalie & Carpenter, Jeffrey, 2020. "Political connections and psychosocial wellbeing among Women's Development Army leaders in rural amhara, Ethiopia: Towards a holistic understanding of community health workers' socioeconomic status," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 266(C).
    4. Dressler, William W. & Balieiro, Mauro C. & Ferreira de Araújo, Luiza & Silva, Wilson A. & Ernesto dos Santos, José, 2016. "Culture as a mediator of gene-environment interaction: Cultural consonance, childhood adversity, a 2A serotonin receptor polymorphism, and depression in urban Brazil," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 109-117.
    5. Béhague, D.P. & Gonçalves, H.D. & Gigante, D. & Kirkwood, B.R., 2012. "Taming troubled teens: The social production of mental morbidity amongst young mothers in Pelotas, Brazil," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 74(3), pages 434-443.

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